


Crush

by orphan_account



Category: Andi Mack (TV)
Genre: Crushes, Day One, Gay Panic, M/M, Tyrus Week 2018, a little bit lol
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-08-12
Updated: 2018-08-12
Packaged: 2019-06-26 04:57:34
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,250
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15656226
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/orphan_account/pseuds/orphan_account
Summary: When he hears his teammates discussing girls that they like, TJ finds himself relating to the exasperated Buffy Driscoll for some reason he won’t dwell on, and he has to rack his brain before he decides he just doesn’t have a crush at the moment. . . until he realizes that he totally does.





	Crush

“Guys— guys it was the  _ sickest.  _ She was, like, super pretty. And we totally held hands—”

“Dude, that’s  _ so _ gay,” Dylan laughed, and most of the other boys laughed along.

TJ just watched on from the back seat, all of his energy spent willing the sun to stop warming their toaster oven of a bus, or praying that the bus would somehow bring them home at warp speed. (Jefferson hadn’t been willing to shell out for a Coach bus this time, claiming that any game less than two hours away was perfectly within yellow bus territory— TJ resented this fact.)

He was just so  _ tired _ .

“C’mon, you know I’ve had a crush on Ashley for, like, forever! I can’t believe you’re being so  _ unsupportive _ in these trying times.”

“I can’t believe you’re being such a  _ girl _ .” TJ noticed how Buffy rolled her eyes at this comment, but kept her mouth shut, unwilling to be involved in their discussion. Which made sense, because she was the only girl on a bus full of boys talking about. . . girls.

“Ashley is pretty cute, I guess.”

“Are you kidding? She’s not just  _ pretty cute _ — she’s like, the hottest girl in school!” Justin exclaimed.

“No way! No way, no way— Hannah is prettier.”

“You’re just saying that because she sent you a picture of her  _ boobs _ .” 

Buffy rolled her eyes at this with even greater contempt, then banged her head against the seat in front of her. TJ hated to admit it, but he could relate.

“And they were  _ nice. _ ”

He didn’t really want to be part of their crush conversation, either. Because, despite the myriad sexist comments they made to make the subject seem cooler, that’s what it all boiled down to— which girls they  _ liked _ . And TJ really didn’t want to think about that.

“Yeah, but she’s not, like— like Jesse Davids hot!”

Not that TJ didn’t like girls too, or anything— he liked girls a perfectly normal amount.

“But everyone has a crush on Jesse. None of us have a chance with her— except, well, maybe TJ.”

“Huh?” He said reflexively upon hearing his name, ripped from his thoughts.

“Well, do you like Jesse Davids, dude?” 

He was a bit stunned, almost resenting his sudden inclusion in the conversation. “I don’t not like her.”

“Yeah, but would you ask her out?”

“Because if you like her, you definitely should.”

TJ frowned. “I don’t really like her as more than a friend.” The boys burst out laughing, before settling into an uncomfortable silence when they realized he wasn’t kidding. “Don’t look at me like I just committed murder!”

“You have to admit it’s a little weird,” Dylan said. “I bet even  _ Buffy _ kinda has a crush on Jesse Davids.”

“Don’t include me in this,” she groaned.

“But do you?”

“I mean. . .  _ yeah _ . She’s gorgeous.”

TJ felt oddly exposed, with all of his teammates’ eyes fixed on him.

“Guys,” Justin finally said, breaking the silence with a teasing tone. “He doesn’t like Jesse because he probably has a crush on someone  _ else _ !”

“Aw, Kippen has a  _ crush! _ ”

“Who is it?”

TJ stared back at his teammates in disbelief. “No one,” he snapped. “Seriously?” He sent Buffy an exasperated look, and she shrugged in response.

“Okay, sure. Whatever you say, dude.” The others seemed eager to move on from the conversation after realizing they’d pissed off their team captain.

But their silence didn’t stop it all from rattling around in his head.

He tried to rack his brain for any girl he could possibly have a crush on. Maybe he just hadn’t realized it? Because it would be totally weird for him to not like anyone at all, but that was what it felt like. 

That’s how it always had been like with girls, though. Was that weird?

He thought about all the other guys at Jefferson. His teammates had made it clear they all had crushes, at least on Jesse Davids if not other girls, too. And, well, Jonah  _ obviously _ had a crush on Andi before they started dating.

He passively wondered whether Cyrus liked any girls. The train of thought triggered sirens in his head, but he couldn’t stop thinking about it. (He had a feeling that Cyrus. . . didn’t like any girls.)

No. He had to stop thinking about it. The whole  _ crush _ thing. It was pointless, and stupid.

He didn’t have a crush.

~

When the bus dropped the team off at Jefferson, it was nearly nighttime, but no one was tired. In fact, everyone was eager to celebrate their victory with milkshakes. 

And it was no surprise, walking into the Spoon, that Andi and Cyrus were sitting at a bench, trading baby taters and chatting away. Buffy lit up, joining them immediately.

TJ took a seat with the rest of the team at a large booth in the corner, but he found himself almost immediately drawn to the GHC’s table. He decided it would be okay to say a quick hello, and so he slipped out of his booth, announcing that he’d be right back.

“Hey Underdog!” He sat down next to Cyrus, bumping shoulders with him.

“Hey TJ! Congrats on the game!”

“Thanks! It was all Buffy, though— she scored the winning basket!” The looks of distrust Andi and Buffy often wore around TJ slowly faded, replaced with slightly bemused smiles.

“Oh yeah, it was all me. TJ  _ kind _ of helped, I  _ guess _ . . .”

TJ rolled his eyes, glad that they’d gotten to this point of friendly teasing. Mostly, he was glad that he was free to hang around Cyrus now, without worry.

“So, what were you guys up to before we crashed the party?” TJ asked, twisting in his seat to grin at Cyrus.

“Oh, we were in the middle of a totally exciting episode of tater theatre!”

“Oh yeah, it was riveting,” Andi deadpanned.

“And I missed it? You’re gonna have to give me a recap.” Cyrus flushed pink, smiling down at his napkin.

“Well, it’s the first installment of Mamma Mia! Tater We Go Again— a bit of a working title, I know— so you really haven’t missed much. Tater Donna just sang When I Kissed the Tater at her college graduation ceremony, and now she’s off to Greece! Well, first she’ll meet Harry, of course, and they’ll sing Waterloo. . .”

TJ couldn’t help but be taken with Cyrus’s enthusiasm. He was just so. . . adorable. And passionate. And his big brown eyes were sparkling, and TJ’s gaze was drawn down to his mouth as he talked, and he wondered if his lips would feel as soft as they looked—

“You okay, TJ?” 

_ Shit. _

“Must be really upset by the loss of Meryl Streep’s character,” Buffy said solemnly, but TJ could hear a teasing,  _ knowing _ note in her voice.

“I— uh, yeah. It’s. . . real surprising.” He looked down at the shiny diner table, avoiding everyone else’s eyes.

He knew what this meant. And  _ God,  _ he hated to admit it, but it really did make a lot of sense, right?

“Hey, don’t worry— she’ll be back for a beautiful performance of My Love, My Tater,” Cyrus teased, and TJ felt butterflies flutter in his stomach.  _ Shit. _

“I can’t wait to hear that! But I’ll— I should really go back to the team, now. . . I’ll see you later, Underdog.” He let himself steal one more glance at Cyrus’s adorable (now, slightly confused) face before leaving and  _ damnit,  _ how had he not realized it sooner? He’d been so wrong. . .

He definitely had a crush.


End file.
